İlkay Gündoğan joins list to have played 100 Champions League games

Forty-eight players have amassed 100 or more appearances in the UEFA Champions League, the world's ultimate club competition. The Champions League's all-time appearances list includes players from the early days of the tournament as well as those still adding to their tally.

İlkay Gündoğan is the latest name on the illustrious list, reaching the landmark in Manchester City's league phase encounter with Sparta Praha in October 2024. The German midfielder has represented Borussia Dortmund – for whom he made his Champions League debut in a 3-1 defeat at Olympiacos on 19 October 2011– Barcelona and City in the competition, captaining the English side to victory in the 2023 final in the last game of his first spell at the club.

Gündoğan is the first player to reach 100 Champions League appearances since 2022/23, when both Ángel Di María, then of Juventus, and Chelsea's Thiago Silva brought up their centuries.

Which players have made 100 Champions League appearances?

This is a list dominated by greats of the game, from the 1990s Milan vintage of Paolo Maldini through to Josep Guardiola's peerless Barcelona team of Xavi Hernández, Lionel Messi and Andrés Iniesta via the great Manchester United side of Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville and David Beckham. Also featured are giants of the competition such as Iker Casillas, Gianluigi Buffon, Thierry Henry, Thomas Müller, Sergio Ramos, Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Luka Modrić.

183 Cristiano Ronaldo (Man United 59, Real Madrid 101, Juventus 23)
177 Iker Casillas (Real Madrid 150, Porto 27)
163 Lionel Messi (Barcelona 149, Paris Saint-Germain 14)
153 Thomas Müller (Bayern)
152 Karim Benzema (Lyon 19, Real Madrid 133)
151 Toni Kroos (Bayern 41, Real Madrid 110)
151 Xavi Hernández (Barcelona)
143 Manuel Neuer (Schalke 22, Bayern 121)
142 Raúl González (Real Madrid 130, Schalke 12)
142 Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid 129, Paris Saint-Germain 8, Sevilla 5)
141 Ryan Giggs (Man United)
131 Luka Modrić (Tottenham 8, Real Madrid 123)
130 Andrés Iniesta (Barcelona)
129 Sergio Busquets (Barcelona)
128 Gerard Piqué (Man United 4, Barcelona 124)
125 Clarence Seedorf (Ajax 11, Real Madrid 25, Milan 89)
124 Gianluigi Buffon (Parma 6, Juventus 113, Paris Saint-Germain 5)
124 Paul Scholes (Man United)
124 Zlatan Ibrahimović (Ajax 19, Juventus 19, Inter 22, Barcelona 10, Milan 20, Paris Saint-Germain 33, Man United 1)
123 Robert Lewandowski (Dortmund 28, Bayern 78, Barcelona 17)
120 Roberto Carlos (Real Madrid 107, Fenerbahçe 13)
120 Pepe (Real Madrid 71, Beşiktaş 6, Porto 43)
119 Xabi Alonso (Real Sociedad 8, Liverpool 39, Real Madrid 47, Bayern 25)
117 David Alaba (Bayern 91, Real Madrid 26)
115 Carles Puyol (Barcelona)
112 Thierry Henry (Monaco 9, Barcelona 26, Arsenal 77)
112 Philipp Lahm (Stuttgart 7, Bayern 105)
111 Dani Alves (Sevilla 8, Barcelona 80, Juventus 12, Paris Saint-Germain 11)
111 Petr Čech (Sparta Praha 12, Chelsea 94, Arsenal 5)
110 Ángel Di María (Benfica 14, Real Madrid 39, Paris Saint-Germain 54, Juventus 3)
110 Arjen Robben (PSV Eindhoven 10, Chelsea 19, Real Madrid 11, Bayern 70)

109 Paolo Maldini (Milan)
109 Gary Neville (Man United)
109 John Terry (Chelsea)
108 Ashley Cole (Arsenal 45, Chelsea 60, Roma 3)
108 Patrice Evra (Monaco 21, Man United 65, Juventus 22)
108 Andrea Pirlo (Inter 5, Milan 78, Juventus 25)
107 David Beckham (Man United 77, Real Madrid 26, Milan 2, Paris Saint-Germain 2)
106 Víctor Valdés (Barcelona)
105 Frank Lampard (Chelsea 102, Manchester City 3)
105 Thiago Silva (Milan 20, Paris Saint-Germain 60, Chelsea 25)
104 Cesc Fàbregas (Arsenal 55, Barcelona 26, Chelsea 23)
103 Luís Figo (Barcelona 24, Real Madrid 58, Inter 21)
103 Oliver Kahn (Bayern)
103 Fernandinho (Shakhtar Donetsk 30, Man City 73)
102 Marcelo (Real Madrid)
100 İlkay Gündoğan (Borussia Dortmund 20, Man City 70, Barcelona 10)
100 Andriy Shevchenko (Milan 59, Chelsea 15, Dynamo Kyiv 26)

Who was the first player to make 100 Champions League appearances?

First centurion

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Raúl González became the first player to make 100 Champions League appearances on 21 February 2006, the then 28-year-old coming on as a substitute in Real Madrid's 1-0 home defeat by Arsenal.

How many players scored on their 100th Champions League appearance?

Six players have scored on their 100th Champions League outings, with Robert Lewandowski the only one to hit more than one as he buried a hat-trick for Bayern against Benfica in 2021.

Robert Lewandowski (Bayern 5-2 Benfica, 02/11/2021)
Toni Kroos (Galatasaray 0-1 Real Madrid, 22/10/2019)
Andrea Pirlo (Juventus 3-2 Olympiacos, 04/11/2014)
Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid 3-0 Dortmund, 02/04/2014)
Zlatan Ibrahimović (Paris 2-1 Olympiacos, 27/11/2013)
Thierry Henry (Sporting CP 2-5 Barcelona, 26/11/2008)

How many players have played 100 Champions League games for one club?

Twenty-six players have made over 100 Champions League appearances for one club, including eight for Real Madrid and seven for Barcelona. Thomas Müller's Matchday 1 appearance in 2024/25 was his 152nd for Bayern, taking him clear of Xavi Hernández's longstanding record for Barça.

153 Thomas Müller (Bayern)
151 Xavi Hernández (Barcelona)
150 Iker Casillas (Real Madrid)
149 Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
141 Ryan Giggs (Man United)
133 Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
130 Raúl González (Real Madrid)
130 Andrés Iniesta (Barcelona)
129 Sergio Busquets (Barcelona)
129 Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid)
124 Gerard Piqué (Barcelona)
124 Paul Scholes (Man United)
123 Luka Modrić (Real Madrid)
121 Manuel Neuer (Bayern)
115 Carles Puyol (Barcelona)
113 Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus)
110 Toni Kroos (Real Madrid)
109 Paolo Maldini (Milan)
109 Gary Neville (Man United)
109 John Terry (Chelsea)
107 Roberto Carlos (Real Madrid)
106 Víctor Valdés (Barcelona)
105 Philipp Lahm (Bayern)
103 Oliver Kahn (Bayern)
102 Frank Lampard (Chelsea)
102 Marcelo (Real Madrid)
101 Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)

Centurions without winner's medals

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Only four players have made 100 or more Champions League appearances but not lifted the trophy:

124 Zlatan Ibrahimović
124 Gianluigi Buffon
104 Cesc Fàbregas
103 Fernandinho